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Old 11-19-2010, 06:35 PM   #134
bhartman36
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Shaggy View Post
I think their point is that no matter how low you make the backlight, you are never going to get it to zero. But that's not really the goal.

IMO, the way to get them on an even playing field is to lower it until the light that the LCD is emitting is equal to the amount of light that eInk is reflecting. Most people don't do that though, and depending on the display, probably can't.
I don't think it would ever be possible for an LCD screen to reflect back the same amount of light as an e-Ink screen. The e-Ink screen is reflecting back just the ambient light that bounces off the surface of the screen. An LCD screen bounces back that light, plus the light emitted by the LCD itself (which it's going to emit as long as it's turned on). Therefore, an LCD is always going to emit more light at any one moment. You can probably change the amount of light emitted over time by changing the refresh rate, but if you change the refresh rate so that the screen is "on" less often, that has a negative impact on people's eyes, too.

I can certainly see LCD screens being better for people who like to read at night and aren't particularly bothered by the light, or who only read for short stretches before bed. But I don't think there's a reading advantage in the daytime with LCD screens. I think the advantage for LCD screens i sthat they're more versatile. For e-reader manufacturers, the question's going to be, "Can we still make a profit if we make these devices cheap enough for people to have e-readers and tablets?" If enough people feel like an LCD screen is good enough, the value of e-Ink devices goes way down.
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